Consumer goods are commonly packaged for sale in polymeric containers. It is highly preferable in most instances that the goods provided in such containers remain pristine after packaging until such time that a consumer opens the container for the first time to expose the contents. This is particularly important when consumer protection and safety are paramount, such as when the goods are hardware or foodstuffs.
Traditional tamper evident packages, including polymeric food containers, provide a variety of tamper evident features. These include tear-away plastic films, tapes, or ribbons that overlay the interface of a lid and base to seal a container, tear-away container bands that guard edges of the container to prevent opening thereof prior to band removal, as well as complementary post and hole configurations. In the case of post and hole configurations, once a container is sealed, it may not be opened under normal circumstances without leaving behind a lid portion, such as post, trapped in a base portion, such as a hole, or vice versa, to provide evidence of container tampering.
There exists a heretofore unmet and pervasive need in the art for a tamper evident container structure that accommodates at least dual tamper evident features of a container. These features may include a hidden (inaccessible) container edge to help inhibit container opening at the edge provided in connection with an overt demonstration of tamper evidence such as a bonded tab marker. Such a need may further be satisfied by a tamper evident container structure that facilitates opening of a container as evidence of tampering is rendered on the container by a user. Moreover, the aforementioned need in the art may be further satisfied by a tamper evidence feature that does not result in the creation of tear-away litter, and that may be positioned as desired on a container lid without regard for other tamper evident features of the container.